kentuvky is for hirses and diabetic fools
The star power dial is turned to mega-watt for this year's Barnstable Brown Derby Eve Gala.
Not to drop names (but why not, it's Derby time) — here are a few of the celebrities on this year's breathtaking guest list: actor and comedian Tracy Morgan, news anchor Katie Couric, actor/producer Larry David, "This Is Us" star Justin Hartley, musicians Kid Rock and Maren Morris, celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis and multiple Grammy and Emmy award-winning superstar Harry Connick Jr., who will also sing the national anthem at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 6.
Courier-Journal file photo
"My friends always ask how I will top last year's guest list," said Patricia Barnstable-Brown, who co-hosts the party with her twin sister at her private Highlands mansion. "Well, take a look at who is coming this year. It's incredible. I am so thrilled."
This year's announcement includes more than 40 celebrities from film, television, music and sports. But that's not all. All of the as-yet-unannounced celebrity guests for the Kentucky Derby Festival will also attend the gala. And there's one confirmed A-list celebrity who Barnstable-Brown will announce Derby week. (Place your bets now!)
Green Bay Packers quarterback "Aaron Rodgers just called to me to ask if he could bring 14 of his teammates," said Barnstable-Brown. "I don't know where we'll put them all, but we'll make room."
There is always room for Super Bowl champion and New England Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady,who makes Derby weekend an annual "boys trip." Brady didn't make it to a meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump last week, but he promises not to miss Barnstable-Brown's annual Derby Eve bash.
Barnstable-Brown and her sister, Priscilla "Cyb" Brown, have hosted Louisville's premier celebrity-packed gala, known for its musical extravaganza, for the past 29 years.
"I think about all the people who have walked through the front door of my home," said Barnstable-Brown. "Rod Stewart, Janet Jackson, Lloyd Bridges. It just feels very special that they come to my house."
Crowds of fans will line the street at 1700 Spring Drive as the stars arrive to walk the red carpet starting at dusk on May 5. Inside the residence, guests brush elbows with Hollywood heavyweights, sports legends, and dance to live music into the early hours of Derby morning.
The Barnstable-Brown gala is known for its magical musical mashups. Each year, a parade of musicians from rock and roll, R&B, country - and this year the Metropolitan Opera - take the stage and perform side-by-side. Barnstable-Brown says she never knows who will join in.
"I think it's what makes this party so genuine," she said. "These performers want to give back."
Over the past decade, the Derby eve gala has donated $13 million dollars for diabetes research to the University of Kentucky's Barnstable Brown Kentucky Diabetes and Obesity Center.
Reach Kirby Adams at kadams@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4336.
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